Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Enamel hypocalcification is a defect of tooth enamel in which normal amounts of enamel are produced but are hypomineralized. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] In this defect the enamel is softer than normal. Some areas in enamel are hypocalcified: enamel spindles, enamel tufts, and enamel lamellae.
Enamel spindles are often confused with two other entities: enamel lamellae and enamel tufts. Lamellae are linear enamel defects that extend from the surface of the enamel towards the DEJ, or vice versa. Enamel tufts are "small, branching defects that are found only at the DEJ, protruding into the enamel towards the enamel surface.
The enamel represents the usual translucent semivitriform (glass-like) type of structure. The surface is smooth, glossy and usually of pale creamy white color Questionable: 1: The enamel discloses slight aberrations from the translucency of normal enamel, ranging from a few white flecks to occasional white spots.
Enamel hypoplasia and enamel hypocalcification are examples of defective enamel that potentially gives a discolored appearance to the tooth. Teeth affected in this way are also usually more susceptible to further staining acquired throughout life. Amelogenesis imperfecta is a rare condition that affects the formation of enamel (amelogenesis ...
Since enamel is semitranslucent, the color of dentin and any material underneath the enamel strongly affects the appearance of a tooth. The enamel on primary teeth has a more opaque crystalline form and thus appears whiter than on permanent teeth. The large amount of mineral in enamel accounts not only for its strength but also for its ...
Hypomineralization or hypocalcification, as opposed to hypoplasia, refers to a decrease in the mineral content of the enamel, not the total amount present. It can vary in its presentation, and teeth may appear visually normal or highly translucent. Affected enamel is softer and more susceptible to acid, wear and decay.
Tooth development begins at week 6 in utero, in the oral epithelium. The process is divided into three stages: Initiation; Morphogenesis and; Histogenesis [2]; At the end of week 7 i.u., localised proliferations of cells in the dental laminae form round and oval swellings known as tooth buds, which will eventually develop into mesenchymal cells and surround the enamel organ.
Enamel tufts should also not be confused with the similar enamel spindles. Enamel spindles are also linear defects, similar to lamellae, but they too can be found only at the dentinoenamel junction, similar to enamel tufts. This is because they are formed by entrapment of odontoblast processes between ameloblasts prior to and during amelogenesis.